13

Ψ 𝐋𝐮𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐞 Ψ

𝐋𝐮𝐤𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞, I didn't even realize that the sun was setting. He knocked the sword out of my hand again for maybe the 77th time. I groaned and he held his sword to my neck, and I shook my head as he set his sword down and went over to grab my sword.

"You're not listening! I tell you to grip it harder, think quick!" He shouted.

I spat in his face, "well I'm not one for doing this Luke! I can't freaking sword fight! It's not that easy to do if you haven't been doing it for freaking 7 years of your life!"

I panted from anger whilst looking at him as he sighed and handed me my sword again.

"Maybe we call it a night. I'm not gonna get this and I'm...really hungry!" I whined out, and it was true.

I get very hungry normally. And today I was starving, maybe nerves.

"Look Luke, I appreciate everything you're doing but I'm calling it a night." I dropped the sword to the ground saying, "I surrender my weapon."

I turned around as he raced over in front of me "so that's it? You're just going to give up?" He argued.

"I gave up on having a normal life by the age of 10! What can't you comprehend!" I cried out flailing my arms pushing him away as he grabbed my arm and spun me back to face him.

"You are really gonna let your dad do this? If I did that, believe me I would've been messed up a lot earlier!" He spat at me, and I flinched and pulled myself away.

"And how would you know!? You have your dad! You have him! Acknowledging your existence! I had to live with the fact that my dad never cared and turns out apparently knows I exist! He knows I'm here! He knows! And yet he still sees me as some ghost!"

I cried holding my head and running my hand through my hair and turned around taking deep breaths and tried to calm myself.

"You don't know me." He growled out and I put my rms to my sides as I turned around seeing him right up close and personal as I placed my hands on his chest pushing him back slightly.

"I'm trying to give you some sort of guidance but you just don't want it. Why let your dad win?" He asked me as I frowned.

"Because...my mom. My mom, it all goes back to her. I had to see her crying some nights, praying to a stupid god that I let her believe he exists. I just...why doesn't he care? Why did he do this to me? To her...to us?" My voice was shaky, my hands were trembling along with my bottom lip.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm acting like a 2-year-old." I let out wiping my tears from underneath my eyes.

"No. I'm sorry. I'm pushing you too hard. I mean not all of us are meant for this. I mean...look at you're whining." He tried to claim, and I laughed.

"You're doing that tactic! Get me so upset and angry and then I'll do what you want. Easiest trick in the book but I'm not buying it." I turned back around, and he suddenly said "I'm sure your mom would like to see you right now. Giving up. Maybe your...just like your dad."

I stopped and turned around as he said "I mean...not like either of us would know, he also gave up quickly too.

I glared at him and kicked out the sword from his hand as he was shocked that I did what I had done and winced, gripping his hand in pain. I grabbed my sword from the floor and held it up at him "that was really mean of you. But it worked..."

Luke's smirk appeared on his face as I set my sword down and he asked "see? You had it in you."

He watched me and said "don't worry. I was lying. You're not like your dad...you're just frustrated."

He walked over to a rock and sat down, and I sat by his side looking to my left and he looked at me.

"Gods make us so we can do their bidding for them. All of us are just thrown to the side because we are not card for. They don't care at most times." He claimed and I looked at him.

"They want us to do whatever we want so they can easily just argue that we're the bad guys in the situation." I looked at him and asked, "Why aren't they more scared of us than us?"

He looked at me and sighed trying to find words as he rubbed his hands together, "because they believe that we are still too weak, we fear them sometimes. Cause that's what they do. The gods want to instill fear in us. They don't grow attachments because then they can use it to their advantage to get what they want."

That sentence made me smile and told him "If I ever found my dad, I would sure give him hell."

I smiled and he said "don't think about any of your dad like that. Use it to your advantage. All that pent up anger. It can lead you to succeed."

Luke stood up and grabbed his sword from the ground and held it up. I stared at his sword and stood up as well holding a sword up as he lunged at me trying to knock down the sword. I jumped onto the rocks as he tried aiming for my legs and I jumped and flipped down as I held my sword up and made my attack on him. He was able to block me until I realized something about him.

A small little thing that showed a weakness, he kept trying to disarm me, but I wasn't gonna let him. I watched as his arm lift up and I went for it I hit his sword again but this time reaching for his arm and twisted it behind his back as he groaned as suddenly he flipped me forward and I landed on my back to the ground. I groaned and saw him about to aim his sword at me again but I was smarter and paid close attention this time to any sort of weakness.

Unfortunately, he never did have a weakness, at least when it came to fighting but sooner rather than later, he would figure out I was his only weakness.

I grabbed his arm and flipped him forward with me as he yelped along with me, and I held his own sword to his throat and panted softly and he looked at me as I basically was sitting on his stomach.

"Is this what you wanted? Me to be more attentive to your weakness?" I asked him simply.

"For your information, I have no weakness. That was just to show you how to find one. Most people have one, if you can find it then you'll have no trouble going after anyone." I huffed and let go of his sword standing up and reached for his hand.

Luke took mine as I pulled him off the ground and he said "finally, we've broken the barrier. Now you gotta stick with it. Just don't be so hard on yourself."

He went ahead and grabbed my sword off the ground holding both in one hand, as we walked back to the camp, he told me "I was surprised by your little quirks, those flips. How did you learn those?"

I explained to him "my mom put me in ballet classes for the summer, the cheapest thing she can do, and it was fun. And with that I learned other sorts of things like gymnastics."

"My mom just loved seeing me in a leotard or tutu." I laughed out and he chuckled at my words with me.

"Your mom loves you a lot huh?" He asked and I stopped to look at him "my mom...she never had a great set of parents growing up. It's the reason why she hates my dad but makes up for it by giving me the best life I could've had."

He nodded and I smiled at him "it's not that late...want to see the bonfire?" He asked me quickly.

I thought for a second and just nodded "sure. I'd like to."

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Luke is seeming to be both a strange but good influence for Hayley.

I wonder why?